Acquainted with the Night
by Ciircee
Summary: Sweet poetry fluff.


Disclaimer: Don't own Pokemon, or any of the related characters.  Don't own any of the poems contained with in this fic; title of fic cheerfully stolen from Robert Frost.  It's a lovely poem; do check it out…as well as all the others here at: http://www.shadowpoetry.com/famous/poets.html It's worth it.

Dedicated: To Chelle-sama (go read her stuff!  Right now!) for not telling me to finish Kitaku rather than write this.  And for making her boys wussies, so I didn't feel so bad about making all of mine incredible saps.  And to Ariala for hosting my Gymshipping obsession.  

_Acquainted With the Night_

"My love, we will go, we will go, I and you,/And away in the woods we will scatter the dew;/And the salmon behold, and the ousel too,/My love, we will hear, I and you, we will hear,/The calling afar of the doe and the deer."  Brock's voice is rich as he stands and cries out.  I can't help glancing over at him as he drops to one knee in front of me.  "Misty?  Do you think that's romantic?  Really romantic?"

Well really, what a thing to ask me.  "You reciting…what was that?"  I gesture vaguely at the book in his hand.  

"Love Song, by Yeats."  He grins.  "There's more."

"You reciting Yeats while we wait for Ash to finish inside this gym is very romantic.  Can I finish my_ book without you bursting into random poetry?"  I wait for the pounding of my heart to settle as he smiles again._

"Somehow, Misty, it just doesn't sound like you mean it."  He flops down to lie in the grass next to me and I study him for a moment as I lean back against the tree we're under.  "How am I supposed to impress girls with love and verse if I can't get an honest reaction from you?"  He flings his arms wide, making me bobble my book and I finally just set it aside in order to watch him.  He's performing so I don't have to hide behind anything now.  "There is a magic made by melody:/ A spell of rest, and quiet breath, and cool/ Heart, that sinks through fading colors deep/ To the subaqueous stillness of the sea,/ And floats forever in a moon-green pool,/ Held in the arms of rhythm and of sleep."

"That's pretty."  It makes me dream, I think.

"I thought so."  Brock's smile is the serious, sweet, real-Brock smile and not the playful grin he was wearing before.  "It reminded me of you, actually."  He rolls up onto an elbow and hands me an aster he's plucked out of the grass.  "I think it was the 'subaqeous sea' part."

Sweet Jesus, Brock, don't say things like that to me.  "Oh.  That's nice.  Who are you going to impress with that one?"  Because I know it won't be me.  He's Brock and I'm Misty and he tends to fall in love with every girl, other than me, that he sees.  True to form he nods thoughtfully.

"Some random girl, maybe the next one I see.  Unless you think my technique needs work?"  That playful smile is tugging at his mouth again and I'm so glad when Ash comes out of the Winsome City Gym.

"Hey guys."  He plops down on my other side and takes the bottle of water I hand him, gulping it down.  "Helen had to leave before we could battle, but I beat all her Junior Trainers so I get the first match in the morning."  

Brock sits up and leans over to hand him a sandwich out of the picnic basket.  "Great.  You and your Pokemon will be fully rested.  You'll take her down, no problem."

I roll my eyes at him before turning to Ash.  "Don't think it's going to be _that easy, Ash.  Helen and her Pokemon will be rested too.  And she's good.  Daisy had a match against her at the last Gym Leader's Counsel Meeting; she really had a tough time with it."_

He cocks his head, thinking seriously as he eats.  "Yeah, alright."  He says finally.  "Helen says that there's a campsite just a mile or so west of here that we can use."  He grins at me, holding out his hand to help me up.  "There's no Pokecenter close by, so don't complain."  He grabs the basket and we set off.  "Too bad, huh Brock?  No Nurse Joy."

"I don't know, Ash." Brock pulls a wry face.  "Apparently my wooing needs work."

"Maybe if you didn't try to emulate P.T Barnum it would go over better."  

"I'm lost.  What's up?"  Ash is blinking at us and I just shake my head as we reach the site.

"I was impressing Misty with the madly passionate depths of my soul while we were waiting."  Brock slings his pack to the ground with gusto and flings himself at my feet.  

There's only so much I can take so I shove him over.  "Better quit while you're ahead."  I say as I step over him.  

He makes a face, but closes his mouth on whichever verse he was going to let out.  "Tent or no tent tonight, guys?  It's not supposed to rain but I heard that the temperature is going to drop."

"No tent."  Ash and I chorus.  "Who wants to pack it in?"  He continues with a groan.  "It's such a pain."  

"And how."  I agree.  "I'd much rather gather wood for a fire than do tent duty."  I frown, thinking for a moment.  "Chore list…Who wants fire?"  Brock looks up from taking out the camp dishes to waggle his eyebrows at me.  The look on his face is so comical that I have to laugh.  "You have enough fire in your 'madly passionate soul'."  

Ash frowns.  "I'm still lost.  What's going on with you two?"  

"I, my friend, was attempting to express my heart to our dear Misty over there with poetic verse." Brock stands, handing Ash his book of poetry.  "And now she denies me."  

"Oh.  Okay."  Ash is turning the book over in his hands, shooting me quizzical looks.

I shake my head.  "He's trying to impress girls by sounding like a circus ringmaster hooked on Yeats and Bishop.  Can it, Brock."  I stop him as his mouth opens.  "Ash, you sweep the campsite, Brock…cook.  I'm going to get wood so I can escape your wild urges."

"Escape?"  Brock snatches his book back and begins flipping pages.  Something tells me I've made a huge mistake.  "Escape me?"  Brock is back in his center-ring-of-the-big top voice.  "Never--Beloved!"  He's starting to cross the clearing towards me with a wicked, impish smile.  "While I am I, and you are you, So long as the world contains us both," I have bad feeling about this, his intentions,  as he stalks closer to me and I tense to run even as I can't help starting to giggle at the look of mischief on his face. "Me the loving and you the loath," He continues and I know that look, I know I do.  I make a dash to hide behind Ash as Brock flings aside his book and pounces.  "While the one eludes, must the other pursue!"

"Help!"  I'm not going to do much evading if I keep laughing like this as Brock chases me in circles.  "Brock, you're nuts!"  He's laughing too, trying to grab me and…well, who knows what.  I try to forget, in this microcosm of friendship and laughter, that my feelings for him have tendrils so deep in my heart that it feels like I've always loved him.  "I don't think any girl is going to be swept away by this act."  Except me, and I was lost a long time ago.

Ash agrees.  "I don't think Nurse Joy's going to fall for being chased around the woods."  Brock turns to look at him and ends up tripping.  

I take advantage of his being winded and on the ground to slip into the woods.  I have work to do and a pain in my chest that has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I'm out of breath and have a stitch in my side.  "Get your work done, you two. I've got branches to collect and a fire to start."  I call back to them; I work for a while, gather an armful of wood and then drop it in a pile so that I can sit on a boulder and rest and try to get over being suddenly miserable.   

"Misty?"  Brock's voice is close and I slip off the boulder quickly.  "Hey."  He says softly as he rounds a pine and finds me.  He looks at me, at the boulder and the branches at the base of it.  "You alright?"  His face is lit by late-afternoon sun and he looks concerned.  For me.

I can't stand it sometimes.  "I'm fine.  Tired; I took a break."  I smile falsely-sunny at him.  "You must be either hungry or cold to have come tracking me down."  I say when he doesn't say anything.  "If you want you can be chivalrous and help me carry this stuff back."  I gather half the pile just to avoid the look in his eyes.  

"It's okay, you know," He says from behind me.  "I'd understand if you want a little time to yourself.  I didn't mean anything by that 'random girl' thing."  I feel something soft brush my check and then a small bundle of flowers is dropped over my shoulder onto the stack I'm holding.  Wildflowers; shepard's purse, honeysuckle, acacia, pansies and some I don't recognize.  They're breaking my heart.

"They're beautiful." I whisper around a lump in my throat.  "We should be getting back."  Things need to be normal.  "Ash probably thinks that you chased me all the way back to town."  I turn to smile at him and find that he's right behind me and now I'm standing in his personal space and I have to tilt my head back to see him.  I wish I hadn't.  He's breaking my heart.

"The night is darkening round me," He says softly, suddenly.  He doesn't move.  "The wild winds coldly blow; but a tyrant spell has bound me, and I cannot, cannot go."

"Brock."  I can't take this, really.  But I can't leave either, because one of his hands is brushing a hair off my cheek and he looks so vulnerable, standing here with me.

"The giant trees are bending; their bare boughs weighted with snow; the storm is fast descending, and yet I cannot go."  He cups my cheek and smiles.  I'm caught, caught, caught.  "Clouds beyond clouds above me, wastes beyond wastes below; but nothing drear can move me: I will not, cannot go."  His voice is quieter, softer, than ever before.  "You should see yourself, Misty."  He says.  "I see you all the time; but I didn't really see you at all until I started looking for a way to get some girl that I don't even know and who doesn't even know me.  All the poems remind me of you."  I can't say anything.  I mean, really, who could say something when the guy of your dreams says things like that to you?  He's taking this as a rejection, maybe, because he's turning away from me again, getting his own half of the firewood. "It's alright, you know."  He repeats his words from earlier.  "I just wanted you to know.  You don't have to, you know, do anything about it."

He's heading back for camp.  I can hear Ash and Pikachu rustling their way through the brush now too.  "Pikachu, you see if you can find them.  Misty might have killed him by now if he's still spouting off at her.  I'm gonna build us a fire.  Next time, they're going to have to do everything.  They can just do camp all on their own next time."  

"We'd better hurry."  Brock is smiling his old smile for me, over his shoulder.  I won't stand for it.  I won't have it, now that I've seen that other smile.  "I'm thinking of making fish for dinner.  We've got some left.  What do you say?"

Jesus, what a time to for stuff like this.  I drop my own armful.  "As I have heard that somewhere in the main, Fresh-water springs come up through bitter brine."  Brock is looking at me now and I wonder if he knows this one, as I've known all those poems that he was reciting.  "I were joy, not fear, clasped hand in hand with thee," and I don't get to finish as Brock throws his sticks down and catches me in a consuming, joyous kiss.  We really are going to have to make camp by ourselves next time.

_Jiendo___

_Love Song: William __Butler__ Yeats_

_Sonnet: Elizabeth Bishop_

_Life in a Love: Robert Browning_

_The Night is Darkening Round Me: Emily Brontë_

_O, Were I Loved as I Desire to Be: Alfred Lord Tennyson_

Also a good read: Love in a Life, by Browning; The Ragged Wood, by Yeats; Acquainted with the Night, by Frost; She Was a Phantom of Delight, by Wordsworth; She Walks in Beauty, by Lord Byron; and Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot


End file.
